Helping individuals integrate 21st century science with ancient wisdom to make their lives and the lives of those in their relationship networks safer, more functional, healthier, happier and more fulfilled.

Subscribe to this blog

Follow Lives 1st by Email

Search This Blog

Posts

The
first word in Yeshua’s first message was TESHUVAH: From that time
Jesus began to preach and to say, “TESHUVAH,
for the Kingdom of Heaven is here!” (Matthew 4:17) English
translators translate the words above as -- “Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!” Today people think
of “repent” a ritual that is done as
part of “being saved,” or “a prayer that is prayed after committing a
sin.” That is not what “TESHUVAH”
meant to Yeshua or his Jewish audience. They knew that Yeshua was “teaching a way life.” Learn what TESHUVAH meant to Yeshua at -- https://therealyesua.blogspot.com/2018/09/repentance-is-way-of-life-not-ritual.html

The
first clue the ancient text provides about this mysterious image is found in
two words of Genesis 1:2 – “RUACH
ELOHIYM.” RUACH is defined as breath, wind or spirit;ELOHIYM is the
word translated God. They are
traditionally translated as “Spirit of
God.” But, since they are in a “construct
state,” this means they are so closely united that “together they constitute one compound idea.”1 It is
important to know where the RUACH
ELOHIYM is located in the account – “It
was hovering above the surface of the waters.” The ancient text makes it
clear that everything created has its own specific place and that requires a
map. Words you take for granted mean very
different things in this account, beginning with “Earth.”

Everything Has a Place 1. Humans live
on the dry thing named “Earth.” 2. Water
creatures live in the Seas. 3. Winged
creatures fly beneath the Heavens. 4. Sun, moon and
stars are set in the Heavens. 5. Nothing is
said about the waters outside the Heavens. 6. The space
above the surf…

I
began this series by asking why is it important for 21st century
Americans to share a common understanding of “what it means to be humans?” My answer to that question was because
it is the one thing that affects every thought we have that includes humans – others and ourselves. And then I pointed
out that if your beliefs about God
are linked to the words of Genesis,
then your understanding of what it means
to be a human includes “humans are
created in the image of God.” This is the second blog in this series and it
is about the first activities that took place on the Sixth Day of Creation. Keeping
things in context is essential for creating accurate understanding of the words
of Jewish and Christian Scriptures.
For some readers, some of the things you are about to read may challenge your
understanding of certain verses. That’s normal because of the linguistic model
we use to translate the ancient Hebrew text into English. We let the words of the ancient texts tell their own
cultural…

This
is the first blog in a series I call “A
Radical New Understanding of Humans.” Why is it important for 21st
century Americans to understand what humans are? It is because that our view
affects and influences everything we do – and
everyone else’s view affects and influences what they do. Humans
are social creatures and that means from conception to the disposal of the body
humans are dependent on other the actions of humans. In most of the “good” and “bad” things humans experience in life, they are the result of actions
of other humans. So, individual and cultural understandings of “what humans are” and “why humans do what they do” are very
important. In
many cases, “understandings of what
humans are” is related to “understandings
of what gods are.” Conflicts over gods and their relationships to human have
been major factors in the rise and fall of nations, as well as the types of
governments that exist and the quality of life those that are governed experience. If
your understandin…

Today
we live in a highly polarized “Us vs.
Them” nation in which members strengthen their feeling of “in-group” belonging by increasing their distance
from and tension with their “out-group”
competitors — “the Others!” Endless attempts at fact-checking,
while valuable, causes group members to go into defense mode instead of change.
Scientists now know that “belonging is stronger than facts.”1 I want to highlight some key
points from the MIT Technology Review
article I quoted from above: ● Members of opposing groups are strengthening
their feeling of “in-group” belonging by increasing their distance between
members of the groups. ● Members of opposing groups are strengthening
their feeling of “in-group” belonging by increasing tension between the
members of the groups. ● Members value belonging is valued above scientific
facts. In
order to change things we must create different ways of belonging. Trying to
change things by yelling and screaming facts weaponized memes doesn’t create
peace…

The
cover of the September/October 2018 issue of MIT Technology Review has – Technology
is threatening our democracy. How do we save it? and The “neuropolitics” consultants who hack voter’s brains. If you
have been in any of our TOV Center discussions over the past few years, this isn’t
“breaking news.” We have been talking about the pressing need for Americans to develop
skills required to make clear distinctions between “free speech” and “weaponized
memes.” The
authors of the articles in this issue of MIT
Technology Review provide some very good information about how to make
those distinctions and develop the skills to protect yourself and your loved
ones. Below are a few quotes: The problem is
that when we encounter opposing views in the age and context of social media, it’s
not like reading them in a newspaper while sitting alone. It’s like hearing
them from the opposing team while sitting with our fellow fans in a football stadium.
Online, we’re connected with our communities, and…